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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29355081">Black Flamingo</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustVisible/pseuds/JustVisible'>JustVisible</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>One Piece</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Cora-san lives because I say so, Doctor Trafalgar D. Water Law, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Law is obsessed with Cora-san, M/M, One Piece: Law's Story, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Vampire Rosinante, so it's canon compliant</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 03:35:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,774</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29355081</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustVisible/pseuds/JustVisible</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Law saw Cora-san everywhere. He was there when he cured himself of amber lead in a dark cave; a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye. Another day, it’s a flutter of a feathery black coat on his ride to work. It wasn't real, so he stopped looking after a while. He just let the ghost exist in his peripheries, where it couldn’t be hurt. </p><p>However, there's more to that which lurks in the peripheries than just wishful thinking. Some ghosts have mass.</p><p>And teeth.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Donquixote "Corazon" Rosinante/Trafalgar D. Water Law</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Black Flamingo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Law was being Bepo's dentist. A couple of large fangs had come loose at the back, where newer, bigger ones were coming through. He was showing minimal pain, uncharacteristic of someone having their wisdom teeth pulled out. Especially without anesthetic. </p><p>It wasn’t easy though, the molar was still connected by some sort of tissue inside the bone that shouldn’t exist. To be fair, he was always discovering new things about Bepo’s physiology when caring for him, but a centipede-like collection of nerve endings keeping a baby fang attached to the gum was not to be expected.</p><p>Law felt the pain in his own mouth each time he tried pulling it out, a pain he couldn’t rationalise but felt no need to in his sleep, so he just got the surgical scissors and snipped the writhing mess.</p><p>He felt a brief sting echo in his own jaw, followed by the sensation of his mouth filling with warm liquid. That was concerning. He took off his gloves to check, excusing himself in front of Bepo. The bear nodded and waited.</p><p>Law felt around inside his mouth, feeling missing gaps that shouldn’t be there. He retracted his fingers to find them covered in blood.</p><p>He pushed his tongue around and found a few of the ones remaining were already coming loose as well, as a phantom hand came in with pliers, pulling at a molar at the back. This, unlike with Bepo, <em> hurt. </em>He could feel that accordion of make-believe nerves tearing up at the roots, turning the bloody soil of his gum over. His tooth was a wailing mandrake of pain.</p><p>“Are you okay?” Bepo asked quietly, wavering in and out.</p><p>Law didn’t respond. He knew this was going to end up being another nightmare. They always were. He pushed himself out of it, to wake up.</p><p> </p><p>The fuzzy darkness slowly peeled away the white glow of the fantasy clinic to reveal his room, a 3 o’clock chill in the air, and Law unable to move an inch. Sleep paralysis, that’s a first, but not something he didn't know existed. He stared at the crawling walls as his eyes adjusted to the dark and startled himself when they locked onto an ominous shape by the door.</p><p>A looming figure, 9 feet tall at least, it's head skimming the roof in a way that betrayed how hunched over he was, encroaching the sleeping crew. It was closest to Law's bed. Massive black wings enveloped it’s body, like a prickling vulture staring down a carcass. The nerves in Law’s eyes made the image squirm and writhe, trying to capture more detail in vain. He couldn’t see the eyes, but as he searched in the void of it's face for them, he felt how much faster his heart was racing by the minute. He wasn't breathing properly, he wasn't blinking. Then, he found them...it's eyes.</p><p>Red.</p><p>Dark, ruddy red...yet somehow glowing, like two flashlights coated in a film of old blood...and they were getting closer.</p><p>He felt a whimper clawing at the back of his throat, threatening to keen out into a child’s scream.</p><p><em> It’s just a hallucination, </em> he tried to tell himself, <em> it’s just a-...your body is still in REM sleep, so it's making up images that aren't even-... </em></p><p>That face was getting closer. He felt himself begin to really panic, he still wasn’t breathing properly; he needed to breathe, he couldn’t close his eyes. If he could just-...</p><p>He took a deep breath and managed to squeeze his eyes shut. When he opened them again, the figure was gone.</p><p>He felt his body slowly begin to wake up, like refilling with blood after experiencing pins and needles. There was a rustling in the dark, before Bepo’s hesitant voice came again, “Law? You okay?”</p><p>Law didn’t even realize he’d made any noise loud enough to alert Bepo to his distress. His throat felt dry. Had he really screamed after all? No, he didn’t think so. The other two were still asleep.</p><p>He wet his throat by swallowing before he answered, “I’m fine...go back to sleep, Bepo.”</p><p>“Sorry...” Said the gentle ice bear, “...bad dream?”</p><p>When Law didn’t respond, he just apologised again to the ceiling, before rolling over and falling back to sleep.</p><p>“Yeah,” Law muttered to himself. “Just a dream.”</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>The next morning, Law found a black feather in his shoe.</p><p>“It’s perfect! I’ve honestly thought about being a hairdresser a couple of times.” Shachi came down the stairs behind him talking about his work at the barber shop to Penguin.<br/>
<br/>
Law quickly stuffed the feather in his pocket and pulled his work shoes on.</p><p>Penguin met Shachi’s enthusiasm with equal fervor, “Same! I mean...I don’t have any big dreams about being a waiter for the rest of my life but-...”</p><p>The three of them head outside together, talking about blissfully mundane things. Law had a faraway look in his eyes, only half listening to them. They were walking their bikes through the morning snowfall. It wasn’t heavy, and there wasn’t any ice, but Wolf generally advised not to ride when visibility was poor. So they waited until they were out of Wolf’s sight before riding down into town.</p><p>Soon enough, talk of lifting cargo and trimming hair wasn't entertaining enough, and so they turned their attention towards the silent leader of their group.</p><p>“What about you, Law?” pipped up Penguin. “How’s the clinic?”</p><p>“It’s a clinic.”</p><p>“...and?” Shachi pressed.</p><p>Law thought about it for a moment, thumbing the feather in his pocket, “it’s what I was meant to do.”</p><p>“Did you sleep alright?” Bepo asked, hesitance dancing at the end of his tone, despite the bravery it must've taken.</p><p>“Fine.” He said dismissively, before throwing a long leg over his bike, ready to ride.</p><p>“I’m sorry to bring it up again!” Bepo rushed out, “it’s just...”</p><p>Law didn’t hear the rest of it as he went shooting down the path towards his clinic.</p><p>"Does Law seem odd to you?" Shachi said, cocking his head to the side and hoping on his own bike. "like...more stand-offish than usual…?"</p><p>"Hey! Don't talk about our leader that way!" Penguin piped up. The two butted heads over who was more loyal than the other, while Bepo frowned to himself.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>"Law! You got here quickly!" The nurse straightened up from where she was watering one of the indoor plants.</p><p>"We raced," He said, dusting off the snow on his jeans and hat before it melted.</p><p>"Oh,” She hummed pleasantly, “how <em> are </em> Shachi and Penguin doing?"</p><p>"<em> And </em> Bepo!" The Doc tagged on at the end for her, over-heard from another room.</p><p>"...and Bepo." She rubbed the back of her neck, "Sorry, after all these years, I'm still trying to grasp the whole talking-bear thing."</p><p>Law just shrugged, before grabbing his stethoscope and clipboard out of the locker, replacing them with his bike lock key.  "Anything on the schedule for me today?"</p><p>"Well, we're actually taking blood donations," She said, checking over the timetable, "Doc was thinking of showing you how to test blood samples for different substances and..."</p><p>"I think I'm good in that department. What's something new I can do to help?"</p><p>The nurse harrumphed at his attitude, "well, as I was saying, we're <em> taking blood donations today </em>, so if you wanted to help, you could try donating some blood."</p><p>Law frowned, "we don't have any patients?"</p><p>That's when the Doc walked in to greet his intern with a smile, "Well, you can handle any walk-ins we have today, but besides the blood, we've got nothing else on. We tend to have a day set aside every couple of months dedicated to taking donations from the townsfolk. It's important to keep our supply up, especially with our limited trade routes. You should seriously consider it; a place like this needs every bit we can get."</p><p>Law thought about it, before shrugging. Oh, why the hell not? He was clear of amber lead, it wouldn't hurt to give back to the community, "Sure, why the hell not?"</p><p>The nurse brandished a pen and paper, "just a pint?"</p><p>"Fuck it, make it two." He said before setting himself up in one of the rooms and sterilizing his arm himself.</p><p>She tutted. "your manners are worse than a drunken pirate."</p><p> </p><p>After about an hour, he'd filled two units of blood, and had the collection pouches labeled and stored away nicely. As the doc watched him and the nurse work, he couldn't help but smile to himself like a proud parent.</p><p>"What's with your face?" Law jabbed with narrowed eyes.</p><p>"Oh nothing," He said, "You just seemed so adamant about doing something other than blood tests, I was wondering if his <em> royal highness </em>was getting bored with the work."</p><p>"I'm not doing this for entertainment, I'm doing this to help people. The more I know, the more I can be of help," He touched where the needle had been in his arm, now patched. "I already know how to test blood. I need to learn more if I'm to grow."</p><p>"You sound like you're on a mission." The doc said, "is there something you're working towards?"</p><p>Was there? It was hard to say. He had so much energy, he felt like he needed to do so much, and had so little time to get it done. But...that wasn’t true anymore...right?</p><p><em> You'll be able to save so many people from now on, Law, </em> He remembered Cora-san saying, <em> not just the sick... </em></p><p>"I don't know," He said honestly.</p><p>"So, it's repaying a debt then?"</p><p>Law didn't answer.</p><p>The doc sat back, casting a contemplative look out the window. The blinds were drawn up, allowing a full view of the sun glancing off the freshly fallen snow. "You know...Wolf came here donating two pints of blood a day for nearly a full week. It got to the point I had to start turning him away, tell him to eat and rest. He was so adamant about repaying me...lord knows what for."</p><p>"Are you trying to get me to do this again tomorrow?" Law asked with a raised eyebrow.</p><p>The doc laughed, "No, I'm warning you <em>not</em> to pull the same stunts! As if you'd listen to me...you and that household always do whatever the hell they want anyways, with no regard for others or <em> yourselves." </em></p><p>The nurse groaned, "tell me about it."</p><p>Law just chuckled.</p><p>"You're smiling more too, the older you get," The doc pointed out. In response, Law immediately dropped the involuntary expression.</p><p>"Yeah...well...it's hard not to when you live and work with idiots." He shrugged his lab coat back on. "So, if there's no other way for me to help...where are those blood samples for testing?"</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>If hope was a light, then the path before Law was once lit by a candle. Until all of a sudden, Cora-san turned on the sun.</p><p>For three days he had walked through the snow. All he wanted was to curl up and die, but he kept going until his legs were numb and he had to stab himself in the arm just to stay conscious. He was tired, lost, hungry and cold.</p><p>But he had to survive.</p><p>And somehow - miraculously - he did.</p><p>He met Wolf, and Bepo and Shachi and Penguin. He got to practice medicine again. He got to be fourteen. Then fifteen. He got to survive, he got to <em> live </em>.</p><p>Needless to say, Law was blinded for the first couple of years. What was a free bird to do, after a lifetime of confinement? Pleasure Town was a peaceful place, the kind Law wasn’t sure he’d ever get the chance to live in again. It was too much for someone like him who’d lived in the dark all his life. So he lived blind.</p><p>Days when he was tired and walking through the crowd, he’d catch a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye. Maybe this figure was taller than the others. Another day, it’s a flutter of a feathery black coat, or a pink shirt. He never turned to look...well, sometimes he did...even as his heart leapt and wistfully whispered *Cora-san!*. It was never him. So he stopped looking after a while. He didn’t have it in him to deliver himself a cruel wake up call over and over again. He knew it was never him, he knew it already, so he didn’t need to confirm it. He just let the ghost exist in his peripheries, where it couldn’t be hurt. </p><p>After that dream though...things changed. He went to the clinic clutching onto the black feather from the other night like a lifeline. That was the duality of dreams...sometimes they were impossibly hopeful, but all nightmares were made of dreams.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>“You're not going to believe this.” The nurse told Law. "But, someone broke into the clinic and stole F-type blood."</p><p>“People steal blood!?" Shachi cried.</p><p>"Why are you here again?" Law asked him with an exasperated look.</p><p>Shachi held up his shabbily wrapped hand, it looked to be someone's pink and blue checkered tie, now splattered with blood, "scissor mishap."</p><p>Law shook his head and began unwrapping the makeshift bandage, "Are you sure it was stolen, Nurse?"</p><p>"Oh wait, you're right, let me just check my handbag to see if <em> I misplaced two units of blood </em>, it could be right next to my cow's heart I keep in here!" The nurse grumbled, pretending to go through her belongings for five seconds.</p><p>Shachi frowned, "why would you do that?"</p><p>"Sarcasm, Shachi," She rolled her eyes. "I was being sarcastic."</p><p>While Law treated his cut (it was just the tip of his finger, but how he managed to nearly cut the tip of his finger off was a mystery), he couldn't help but notice both the nurse and doctor were looking at him. Eventually Law caved under the attention, “Okay, what? Why are you both looking at me like that?”</p><p>Nurse looked towards the doctor, "Well...gosh, how do I put this?"</p><p>"Put what?"</p><p>His two seniors glanced between each other. Eventually, the Doc sighed before leaning forward to deliver the news;</p><p>“It was <em> your </em>blood that was taken, Law.”</p><p>Law stopped what he was doing, spinning around with a needle still in Shachi's finger, "<em> my </em>blood?"</p><p>"Needle!" The nurse cried.</p><p>"Right," Law muttered, taking the needle out, but looking back at the doctor with a raised eyebrow, "That I gave <em> yesterday?" </em></p><p>“Someone’s targeting Law’s blood!?” Shachi cried out.</p><p>“Don’t be ridiculous! It’s just a coincidence.” Penguin muttered.</p><p>"You can be quiet too; I'm not done pulling the glass out," The nurse hissed as she brought the pliers towards his forearm again, "How'd you land on so much glass anyway?"</p><p>"I'm a waiter."</p><p>"That's not an answer."</p><p><em> "mmfm-fm, fmmu-bummff!" </em> Said Bepo from where he laid in a full body sling. Law was afraid to ask about <em> that </em> particular workplace accident.</p><p>“Yeah, I agree, Bepo!" Penguin piped up as if he understood every word from the bear; "they probably just reached in and grabbed the first ones off the rack, and Law was the most recent donor!” </p><p>Penguin and Shachi bickered some more, only to end with the bear apologizing for being paranoid, which was about all anyone could make out clearly through his bandaged face. Having them at Law’s work was certainly livening up the place, but it wasn’t something he wished to become the norm.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Law,” the doctor said, removing his glasses to rub his aching head, “it’s just typical; after all that talk about wanting to help out as well...”</p><p>“It’s fine,” said the young intern, “some asshole out there has gotten a use out of it. Same result at the end of the day." </p><p>Still, having said that, Law couldn't help but feel a little weirded out. The unanswered question still hung in the air; <em> who would steal two pints of blood? </em></p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>Three years ago, Rosinante’s body was left to rot in the snow. If he had the time, Doflamingo would’ve tossed him into the sea, or set him on fire, just to be sure. However, the son of a bitch had tipped the marine’s off to Doflamingo’s plans yet again. So there was no time for burying hatchets before Tsuru was already set upon them, firing canons at their ship. They had to just take their treasure and <em> go </em>.</p><p>Doflamingo smiled to himself, a vein protruding on his forehead.</p><p><em> ‘For your sake, little brother...’ </em> Doflamingo thought to himself, <em> ‘...don’t ever wake up again.’ </em></p><p> </p><p>But what harm was one more betrayal?</p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks to <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Novicecomics/pseuds/Novicecomics"> Novicecomics</a> for helping beta this chapter!</p><p>My twitter of shame: <a href="https://twitter.com/JustVisible_art">https://twitter.com/JustVisible_art</a></p><p>you can also find my ko-fi link on there if you wish.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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